Woman with Fan
June 2, 2017
Slavko Kopac, born in Vinkovci, Yugoslovia (now present day Croatia), served as a painter, sculptor, and ceramicist over the course of his career. Not only did he leave a legacy with his own artwork, but through his work with Art Brut. The course of his life involved graduating from the Academy of Fine Arts in Zagreb, Croatia, working as a fellow to the French Government in 1939, studying art in Italy, before settling in Paris, France.
While at the Zagreb School of painting, Kopac became friends with Jean Dubuffet which eventually led to their collaboration which started the Collection de l'art brut. Dubuffet founded the collection, while Kopac curated it. 'Art Brut', a French term translating to "raw art", was a phrase created by Jean Dubuffet as an entry point for artists that weren't academic, and leant itself to the style of street art at the time. Working as a curator for this collection heavily influenced Kopac's work.
Woman with Fan is a delicate, stylized lithograph that resembles a painting. Appearing to be high class, we see this woman depicted looking off to the left, the profile of her face abstracted only showing one of her blue eyes, as she cools herself off with a paper fan while night life is going on around her. This piece reinforces the artistic strengths that Kopac is known for, stylized proportions, loud color, and an overall lack of self-consciousness.